~ Beyond bones & stones

Mojtaba Mirtahmasb: A Filmmaker from Iran

Mojtaba Mirtahmasb was born in 1971 in the city of Kerman in Iran. He began and created his artistic life between the years of 1992-95 in University of Art (Mojtame’-e Daneshgāhiyeh Honar) in Tehran during preparation of his BA degree in Visual Art and Handicrafts. University of Art as the first intellectual and modern Art University after Islamic Revolution of Iran and war between Iran and Iraq was the best place for M.Mirtahmasb to meet the other artists in different fields of art, especially visual art such as photography, graphic design, painting, sculpturing, film making….

During 1992-95 he travelled a lot around Iran and did many little field research projects that his BA thesis is the result of these all. From one hand with his personal attraction to the “Shiite Rituals and Ceremonies” and the other hand his experiences in University of Art and preparation of his degree in the field of handicrafts he decided to work on “Iranian Islamic Material Culture”. “Artistic Manifestations of Islamic Culture in the Mourning Accessories of Moharram” is the title of his BA thesis. Beside his researches in university, M.Mirtahmasb always showed his personal talent and creativity regarding Photography and Cinematography.

His academic trainings during four years in University of Art, his personal curiosity and attractions to the “Islamic Visual Art and Cinematography of Iran” were the best reasons and potentials for him to directed first films of his artistic C.V. From 96 to 97 he directed 9 documentary-fiction films about the “Islamic Art and Material Culture of Iranian Shiism” under the global titles of the “Art Stories Series”, for introducing Iranian Traditional Handicrafts to Iranian young generations.

Here he show us his personal enthusiasms and interests to “The Art and Material Culture of Iran” mixed with his scientific knowledge and learning from his studies in University of Art.

In this series he worked on the subjects like ‘Alam (Banner), Qalamkâr (Calico making), Minâ (Art of Glazing, enamel work), Ayeneh-kāri (Mirror work on Islamic Architecture), Gachbori (Islamic lime carving), Kashikāri (Islamic tile work), Qalamzani (Islamic metal engraving), Patteh (Islamic needle work) and Mesgari (copper smith). These series of film financed mostly by Iranian Broadcasting for learn the Islamic Art and Material Culture of Iran to young generations. So it’s why in most of his films, M.Mirtahmasb has one child key personage who wants to learn and understand the function and creation of these traditional handicrafts.

M.Mirtahmasb personally says that this period of his works is mostly the beginning of his Cinematography character and he likes it. On 1997 during his military services as his professional activity in army, he directed three video clips regarding “War and Martyrs”.

Dāstān-e Khoramshahr (The Story of Khoramshahr), Sarzamin-e mādari (Motherland) and Setāreha (Stars) are his video clips of this period that got several national prices.

During 1998 till 2002 he produced and directed many short films about different subjects. Sedāy-e dovom (Back Vocal) and Sāz-e mokhālef (Off Beat) are his two recent films that show us his personal inquiry and thinking for the actual situation of Art, Youth and Gender in Iran. As he knows most of the artists and art producers in Iran, by make interviews and direct talking with these people specially women and young generations in Tehran, he tries to show us new visions and new versions of life in Iran.

M.Mirtahmasb is one of the rare young post-revolutionary generations and artists of Iran who has big names in his Cinematography’s C.V. for participating on their films, the names like Kambozia Partovi (Iran is my Home), Mohsen Makhmalbaf (Kandehar) and Sediq Barmak (Osama). He decided to stay and live in Iran and continue to make documentaries and fictions about the Art and Society in actual Iran.

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About Pedram Khosronejad

Dr. P. Khosronejad is Farzaneh Family Scholar and Associate Director for Iranian and Persian Gulf Studies. He is a socio-cultural and visual anthropologist of contemporary Iran. From 2007-2015 he held the position of Goli Rais Larizadeh Fellow of the Iran Heritage Foundation for the Anthropology of Iran in the Department of Social Anthropology at the University of St Andrews. He is Chair of The Anthropology of the Middle East and Central Eurasia Network of the European Association of Social Anthropologists. His research interests include cultural and social anthropology, the anthropology of death and dying, visual anthropology, visual piety, devotional artefacts, and religious material culture, with a particular interest in Iran, Persianate societies and the Islamic world.